The Banff Mountain Book Competition released the long list of contenders for various categories on September 15–two stories from Alpinist magazine are being considered for Best Mountaineering Article: “Denali, A Universe,” by Jan Harper-Haines, first published in Alpinist 67 (Autumn 2019), and “Melting Giants,” by Benjamin Ribeyre and Erin Smart, Alpinist 68 (Winter 2019-20). “Leper Chai,” by Jeff Long for Rock and Ice is also nominated.
Additionally, two books by recent Alpinist contributors Bernadette McDonald and David Smart are on the list for Non-Fiction Mountain Literature, respectively: Winter 8000: Climbing the World’s Highest Mountains in the Coldest Season, and Emilio Comici: Angel of the Dolomites. Related articles to those books were recently published in Alpinist 70–“Nanga Parbat: The Magnificent Obsession” by McDonald–and “Blood That Dreams of Stone: Antonia Pozzi, Climbing Poet,” by Smart in Alpinist 68. Other past Alpinist contributors are also being recognized at Banff.
This year’s jury panelists are Helen Rolfe, Nandini Purandare and Pete Takeda.
“Melting Giants” will soon be available in audio format in Season 2 of Alpinist Aloud, a podcast in which selected stories from the print magazine are read out loud. You can find Season 1 of Alpinist Aloud and other episodes of the Alpinist Podcast here.
The Banff Centre website describes the book competition as “an internationally recognized literary competition that celebrates mountain literature in all its forms. Over $20,000 in cash is awarded annually with eight awards selected by an international jury of writers, adventurers and editors. The short list of category award winners eligible for the Grand Prize is announced in October every year. In 2020, the Grand Prize will be announced on Thursday, November 5, at the Festival and category awards will be presented to winning authors.”